Just in time to enjoy the summer’s bounty, I bring you a great pickling recipe from my new book, Salt: The Essential Guide to Cooking with the Most Important Ingredient in Your Kitchen, which hits the shelves on Sept 6. I love these sweet fruity pickles as a balancing accompaniment to salty charcuterie dishes, or as a tart, balancing feature to super-sweet desserts. Also, I like them right out of the jar, as I stand in front of the fridge. You can make the two separately, but I like the essence of summer they evoke together. The charred spices add a layer of sophistication that powdered dry spices simply can’t.

Ingredients

4 cups rhubarb, cleaned and cut into 2-inch lengths

4 cups of the white meat of the watermelon rind (Use a potato peeler to remove the tough green skin)

In a small saucepan, combine water, vinegar, sugar and salt. Bring it to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer until the sugar and salt are dissolved.

Using tongs, hold the cinnamon sticks and star anise over an open flame, until they ignite. Allow to burn for a few seconds, until charred, then drop them into the pickling liquid. Pour the liquid—spices and all—over the rhubarb and watermelon. Let cool at room temperature, then refrigerate for at least 1 day. The texture stays crisp for about a week. After a while, when you find they are too soft, add them into your favorite relish, chow chow, or chutney recipe.

Variations

Fennel – Sliced raw fennel bulb makes an equally enticing pickle using this recipe. I add the chopped fennel fronds to the mix as well.

Carrot – Try this same recipe with slices, or long julienne shreds of carrot. Add some ginger into the brine for fun. And why not try it with rainbow carrots. Yellow and orange together make a bold statement. Purple carrots bleed their color onto the others during curing, so soak them in a separate container.

Radish – Standard radishes, with red skin and white meat, turn a lovely shade of pink in this brine.